Reeves’ father earned his GED while imprisoned in Hawaii for selling heroin at Hilo International Airport.[14] He abandoned his wife and family when Reeves was three years old, but Reeves knew him until he was six. They last met on the island of Kauai when Reeves was 13.[15][16] Reeves moved around the world frequently as a child, and lived with various stepfathers.[12] After his parents divorced in 1966, his mother became a costume designer and moved the family to Sydney,[17] and then to New York City, where she married Paul Aaron, a Broadway and Hollywood director, in 1970.[18] The couple moved to Toronto, Ontario, and divorced in 1971. When Reeves was 15, he worked as a production assistant on Aaron’s films.[19] Reeves’ mother then married Robert Miller, a rock music promoter, in 1976; the couple divorced in 1980. She subsequently married her fourth husband, a hairdresser named Jack Bond. The marriage ended in 1994. Grandparents and nannies babysat Reeves and his sisters, and Reeves grew up primarily in the Yorkville neighbourhood of Toronto.[20][21]

Within five years, Reeves attended four high schools, including the Etobicoke School of the Arts, from which he was expelled.[12] Reeves stated he was expelled because he was “just a little too rambunctious and shot [his] mouth off once too often… [he] was not generally the most well-oiled machine in the school”.[22] Reeves excelled more in sports than in academics, as his educational development was challenged by dyslexia. He was a successful ice hockey goalkeeper at De La Salle College, earning the nickname “The Wall”.[12] He dreamed of playing ice hockey for Canada,[23] but an injury forced him to consider other career paths.[citation needed] After leaving De La Salle College, he attended Avondale Secondary Alternative School, which allowed him to obtain an education while working as an actor. He later dropped out and did not obtain a high school diploma.[24]

Career

Early career: 1980–1986

Reeves began his acting career at the age of nine, appearing in a theatre production of Damn Yankees.[citation needed] At 15, he played Mercutio in a stage production of Romeo and Juliet at the Leah Posluns Theatre.[25] Reeves dropped out of high school when he was 17. He obtained a green card through his American stepfather and moved to Los Angeles three years later.[12][19] He lived with his ex-stepfather, Paul Aaron, who was a stage and television director.[12] Reeves made his screen acting debut in an episode of Hangin’ In. In the early 1980s, he appeared in commercials (including one for Coca-Cola), short films including the NFB drama One Step Away[26] and stage work such as Brad Fraser‘s cult hit Wolfboy in Toronto. In 1984, he was a correspondent for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation TV youth program Going Great.[27]

His first studio movie appearance was Youngblood (1986) in which he played a Québécoisgoalie. Shortly after the movie’s release, Reeves drove to Los Angeles in his 1969 Volvo. His stepfather had convinced Erwin Stoff in advance to be Reeves’s manager and agent. Stoff has remained Reeves’s manager, and has co-produced many of his films.[28]

Breakthrough: 1986–1994

After a few minor roles, Reeves received a sizable role in the 1986 drama film River’s Edge, which depicted how a murder affected a group of teens. Following this film’s critical success, he spent the late 1980s appearing in a number of movies aimed at teenage audiences, including the lead roles in Permanent Record and the unexpectedly successful 1989 comedy, Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure, along with its 1991 sequel, Bill & Ted’s Bogus Journey. The same year he had a breakout role in the movie Parenthood.

Rise of prominence in film: 1994–1999

In 1994, Reeves’s career reached a new high as a result of his starring role in the action film Speed. His casting in the film was controversial, since, except for Point Break, he was primarily known for comedies and indie dramas. He had never been the sole headliner on a film. The summer action film had a fairly large budget and was helmed by novice cinematographer-turned-director Jan de Bont.

Reeves’s career choices after Speed were eclectic: despite his successes, Reeves continued to accept supporting roles and appear in experimental films. He scored a hit with a romantic lead role in A Walk in the Clouds. He made news by refusing to take part in Speed 2: Cruise Control – despite the offered $11 million paycheck, which would have been his largest to date – in favour of touring with his band and playing the title role in a 1995 Manitoba Theatre Centre production of Hamlet in Winnipeg, Manitoba.[29] Of his performance, Roger Lewis, the Sunday Times theatre critic, wrote, “He quite embodied the innocence, the splendid fury, the animal grace of the leaps and bounds, the emotional violence, that form the Prince of Denmark … He is one of the top three Hamlets I have seen, for a simple reason: he is Hamlet.”[30]

However, Reeves’ choices after A Walk in the Clouds failed with critics and audiences. Big-budget films such as the sci-fi action film Johnny Mnemonic and the action-thriller Chain Reaction were critically panned and failed at the box office, while indie films like Feeling Minnesota were also critical failures. Reeves finally started to climb out of his career low after starring in the horror-drama The Devil’s Advocate alongside Al Pacino and Charlize Theron. Reeves took a pay cut of $1 million for The Devil’s Advocate so that Pacino would be cast, and later took a 90 per cent pay cut for the less successful The Replacements to guarantee the casting of Gene Hackman.[31]The Devil’s Advocate did well at the box office and garnered good reviews.

Hollywood stardom and The Matrix trilogy: 1999–2009

The 1999 science fiction-action hit The Matrix, a film in which Reeves had a starring role, was a box office success and attracted positive reviews.[32]

Reeves’ star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame

In between the first Matrix film and its sequels, Reeves received positive reviews for his portrayal of an abusive husband in The Gift. Aside from The Gift, Reeves appeared in several films that received mostly negative reviews and unimpressive box office grosses, including The Watcher, Sweet November, and The Replacements. However, the two Matrix sequels, The Matrix Reloaded and The Matrix Revolutions, along with Something’s Gotta Give and the 2005 horror-action film, Constantine, were box office successes and brought Reeves back into the public spotlight. Reeves performed with the band Becky for a year, but quit in 2005, citing his lack of interest in a serious music career.[33]

In early 2005, Reeves’ accomplishments in Hollywood were recognized by the Hollywood Walk of Fame with a star located at 6801 Hollywood Boulevard.[34]

Eclectic filmmaking and John Wick: 2009–present

Beginning in 2008, Reeves began pre-production on his directorial debut, Man of Tai Chi. The film is a multilingual narrative, partly inspired by the life of his friend, stuntman Tiger Chen. Filming occurred on mainland China and Hong Kong. During Man of Tai Chi’s five years of scripting and production, Reeves acted in several B movies with lead roles as Henry in Henry’s Crime (2010) and John in Generation Um… (2012). During that time, Reeves also played Kai in the critically panned 47 Ronin.[37] Critics widely attribute the film’s poor performance to its direction, pacing, focus on special effects, and editing.

In 2011, he returned to other artistic mediums of expression. Having played music earlier in his career, he forayed into literature by writing the text for a “grown-up picture book” entitled Ode to Happiness. The text was complemented by Alexandra Grant’s illustrations.[38][39] In 2011, he produced the documentary Side by Side about the supplanting of photo-chemical film by digital camera technology; Reeves interviewed several celebrated directors including James Cameron, Martin Scorsese, and Christopher Nolan.

Reeves has continued acting while exploring other forms of artistry. In October 2014, he played the title role in the action thriller John Wick. The film, which stars Reeves as a retired hitman, opened to positive reviews and performed well at the box office.[37] He reprised the role in John Wick: Chapter 2 (2017), which was also well received,[42] and is set to return for John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum (2019). In 2016, Reeves appeared in the horror thriller The Neon Demon and the dystopian romance The Bad Batch.

Reeves had a cameo in the action-comedy film Keanu, in which he voiced the eponymous kitten. Keanu director Peter Atencio revealed that the filmmakers had contacted Reeves’ management about Reeves appearing in the film, who declined on his behalf. When Reeves’ sister showed him the trailer, Reeves contacted the filmmakers directly about appearing in the film. As the film had been mostly completed, they decided to have a scene where he voices the kitten.[43]

Future projects

It was announced in January 2009 that Reeves was to star in a live-action film adaptation of the anime series Cowboy Bebop,[45][46] initially slated for release in 2011. Because of budgeting problems, the script was sent for a rewrite. The project’s status is currently unknown, and its prospects are more uncertain now that Netflix has announced a live-action TV Series.

In April 2011, Reeves stated that a third installment of the Bill & Ted series was possible.[47] He further elaborated on the film in December 2013 during a taping of NBC’s The Today Show, “I’m open to the idea of that. I think it’s pretty surreal, playing Bill and Ted at 50. But we have a good story in that. You can see the life and joy in those characters, and I think the world can always use some life and joy.”[48] In May 2018 “Bill and Ted 3” was officially confirmed under the title Bill and Ted Face the Music.[49] Reeves has been linked to the maritime romance The Modern Ocean.[50]

Europe’s first Keanu Reeves film festival titled KeanuCon was announced to be hosted at Glasgow in Scotland[51]. Originally scheduled on the birthday of Reeves in September 2018, this was postponed due to a fire at the Glasgow school of Art. The festival will now be held on 27th and 28th April this year featuring nine films over two days. The movies to be screened include My Own Private Idaho, Speed, The Matrix, Constantine, Keanu’s directorial debut, Man of Tai Chi, and John Wick[52].

On December 24, 1999, Reeves’ girlfriend, Jennifer Syme, gave birth eight months into her pregnancy to Ava Archer Syme-Reeves, who was stillborn. The strain put on their relationship by their grief resulted in their breakup several weeks later. On April 2, 2001, Syme was driving alone on Los Angeles’ Cahuenga Boulevard when she sideswiped three parked cars, rolled over several times, and was thrown from the car. Authorities believed she died instantly. She was reportedly being treated for depression and taking two prescription drugs, which police found in her car.[55][56] Reeves, who was scheduled to begin shooting back-to-back Matrix sequels during the subsequent spring, sought “peace and time” to deal with the incident, according to his friend Bret Domrose, a guitarist in Reeves’ alternative rock band Dogstar.[55]

While often described as a Buddhist or atheist, including being mentioned on a “Famous Atheists” list, Reeves is non-religious and has occasionally expressed a belief in God or some other higher power, stating, “I believe in God and the Devil but they don’t have to have pitchforks and a long white beard.”[57] He has clarified that he has a lot of interest in and respect for Buddhism, but has not “taken refuge in the dharma“.[58] In September 2013, when asked if he was a spiritual person, he replied with a laugh, “Do I believe in God, faith, inner faith, the self, passion, and things? Yes, of course! I’m very spiritual. Supremely spiritual. Bountifully spiritual. Supremely bountiful.”[59] Reeves has generally been reticent about his spiritual beliefs, saying that it is something “personal and private”.[60]

In 2010, an image of Reeves became an internet meme after photos of him, seemingly depressed while sitting on a park bench eating alone, were posted to a 4chan board. The images were soon distributed via several blogs and news sites. These pictures led to the “Keanu is Sad” or “Sad Keanu” meme being spread on internet forums. An unofficial holiday was created when a Facebook fan page declared June 15 as “Cheer-up Keanu Day”.[61][62] On the first anniversary of “Cheer-up Keanu Day”, Reeves was interviewed for an article in the British newspaper The Guardian.[63]

Legal issues

In 2008, Reeves was sued in Los Angeles Superior Court by paparazzo Alison Silva. The unsuccessful $711,974[64] suit claimed that Reeves hit and injured Silva with a Porsche after concluding a family visit at a Los Angeles medical facility.[65][66] The lawsuit took a year and a half to make it to trial, during which time Silva continued to attack Reeves and demand payment. At the trial, all 12 jurors rejected the suit, needing only an hour of deliberation to reach their verdict.[67]

In 2014, two stalkers trespassed on Reeves’ Hollywood Hills home. On September 12, 2014, Reeves awoke and found a stalker in his library, who told him that she was there to meet him. While Reeves calmly talked to the stalker, he called the police, who arrived and arrested her before taking her in for psychological evaluation. Three days later, a second stalker made her way into his home through a gate that was left unlocked by a cleaning company. The intruder undressed and took a shower in Reeves’ bathroom before swimming naked in his pool. The cleaning crew became suspicious and alerted Reeves, who was not at home. He then notified the police and the stalker was remanded.[68][69]

Philanthropy and business

Reeves set up a cancer charity, choosing not to attach his name to the organization; he has also supported PETA, the SickKids Foundation and Stand Up to Cancer. In 2014, he said in an interview that his sister Kim had battled leukemia for more than a decade.[70]

Reeves is quoted as saying, “Money is the last thing I think about. I could live on what I have already made for the next few centuries.”[71] It has been reported that Reeves gave approximately $80 million of his $114 million earnings from The Matrix sequels, The Matrix Reloaded and The Matrix Revolutions, to the special effects and makeup staff. The story has been denied by special effects staff themselves as an urban legend.[72] The story likely had its roots in a back-end deal Reeves made with the producers of The Matrix Reloaded, relinquishing his contractual right to a percentage of the earnings from the ticket sales. Reeves reportedly did so to allow producers the flexibility for an extensive special effects budget. The value of Reeves’ forgone share of the ticket profits has been estimated at $38 million, which was added to the overall movie budget, rather than going directly to special effects.[73]

Reeves co-founded a production company, Company Films. The company helped produce Henry’s Crime, a film in which Reeves stars.[74]